Museums grab the headlines and private homes pay the bills, but for architects, hotels are a unique way to let the audience get up close and personal with the work. Don’t believe us? Try spending the night at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao or Philip Johnson’s Glass House, and let us know how it goes.

1.

RemotaPuerto Natales, Chile — When you’ve journeyed to the end of the earth, a man-made monument would feel out of place. Remota, by Germán del Sol, is modern architecture at its most self-effacing.Book it →

2.

Hotel AmericanoNew York, New York — The Americano’s simple white interiors recall those of its Chelsea art gallery neighbors, however the gleaming metal screen that covers its face is anything but minimal.Book it →

3.

ConservatoriumAmsterdam, Netherlands — Amsterdam’s historic music conservatory retains its classic façade, but inside it’s been totally re-imagined, put to new use as the ultra-modern Conservatorium Hotel.Book it →

4.

H2HotelSonoma Valley, California — Northern California’s Sonoma Valley finally comes of age: this modern classic in wine country leaves Tuscan villas and Provençal farmhouses as nothing but a distant memory.Book it →

5.

ClaskaTokyo, Japan — It’s no longer the new kid on the block, but Claska, out in Tokyo’s creative-focused Meguro district, is still a pilgrimage site for design groupies and boutique-hotel junkies.Book it →

6.

La PurificadoraPuebla, Mexico — This modernist makeover of a 19th-century water processing plant is one of Puebla’s new architectural wonders, with a rooftop pool that’s not to be missed.Book it →